How to Remotely Access Your Computer from Your Phone

There comes a time in nearly every computer user’s life when they need a file from their PC…and the PC isn’t nearby. Fortunately, there’s an easy way to remotely access your PC directly from your phone or tablet, making getting that missing file a piece of cake.

While there are many options out there that allow this, we’re going to limit our focus to a couple of the easiest and most convenient. Why work harder to do less? Here are your best options.

Ah, good ol’ Chrome Remote Desktop. This has been my personal go-to for remote access ever since it was first released some years ago. It’s quick and easy to use, completely painless to set up, and works on pretty much any device across the board, from Windows, Mac, and Linux to Android and iOS.

Of course, it does have its caveats, like the fact that you have to be a Chrome user. While there are a lot of Chrome users out there, I get that there are also quite a few users who just aren’t into Google’s browser, and that’s okay—we’ll talk about a good option for you guys down below. But if you use Chrome, this is probably your easiest option.

How to Set up Chrome Remote Desktop

First, you’ll need to install the Chrome Remote Desktop extension in your browser. It’s available from the Chrome Web Store, and the installation takes all of a few seconds.

Once installed, you’ll launch the app from Chrome’s app menu—it should be the first link in the bookmarks bar. From there, just look for the Chrome Remote Desktop link.

The first time you launch it, you’ll have to enable remote connections to the computer by installing a small utility. The process is very straightforward, and Chrome will guide you through the whole thing.